A Fallen Soldier
by albus-equesXV
Summary: Five years after the events of Zack's death, a former SOLDIER member returns to society, unprepared to face the world and the people she failed to protect.


Five years.

 _"Midgar is gone…"_

Five years she'd been slumbering in a mako tank, oblivious to the world changing around her.

 _"SHINRA was destroyed…"_

Quinn Reeds roamed the ruins of Midgar, observing the obliteration Meteor brought upon what once was her home. The sky she walked underneath mirrored her heart, dark and overcast with grief.

She tried to navigate through the debris as though the city still existed, but was met with frustration and despair at every turn. The city had collapsed on itself, making it impossible to determine where she stood. Heartbroken and submerged in disbelief the woman ran, ignoring the foul odor of scalded metal and ashen air, and trying in vain to find the city still fresh and wholesome in her memories. It wasn't until she raced through a broken archway and crushed shards of a broken clock that she stopped dead in her tracks.

She'd come upon a fountain or rather the remains of one and a piece from a sign that read "VELESS AVE". Her heart sank as she realized she had finally reached her destination.

Sector 8, her childhood home, shattered before her feet.

 _Why did you wake me up?_

It seemed like a lifetime had passed before Quinn could tear her eyes away. She solemnly passed the remains of the Sector 1 Station, sulking along the broken path towards the slums of Sector 5.

 _"We couldn't save him…"_

Guilt and sorrow washed over her, the weight of it forcing her to grasp a wall of rubble for support.

 _"We were too late…by the time we got there he was…"_

"Dead."

Quin felt hollow and frail as if even a small gust of wind was enough to shatter whatever was left of her remaining self. She bit back tears threatening to fall and instead covered her face and let out a groan of exasperation.

 _"I'm going to Midgar…"_

 _"It's not there anymore."_

 _"I need to see it."_

Looking upon the ruins of Midgar once more, she realized it was just as empty as she was, just as broken, just as gone. With great effort Quinn continued, her feet dragging with each step. The night seemed never ending until at last rays of sunlight hit the ground beneath her sore feet.

She looked up and froze.

There standing tall as a beacon of light amongst the death and decay brought on by Meteor was none other than Aerith's church.

 _How could it have survived when everything else had fallen?_

In spite of herself she smiled, remembering how excited she was to finally meet Aerith, and how happy Kunsel was to see them get along. Quinn gazed at the entrance, void of its wooden doors, and she couldn't help but hope that despite all the surrounding destruction Aerith would be there tending to her flowers. Did she know he was dead?

Paying no mind to her weary legs, trembling with each tentative step, Quinn made her way to the church, pausing as she stood in the doorway. She was foolish to believe it would have remained unscathed.

Most of the pews were broken, shattered within remnants of stone. The windows, once adorned with stained glass, were empty and allowed the church to become filled with light. And where was once a flowerbed, abundant with blossoms of yellow and white, was an effervescent pool, glistening underneath the sunshine that radiated through a demolished wall and whatever was left of the wooden roof.

Quinn forced herself to remember her reality: It had been years, not days since she'd last set foot in Aerith's church.

Despite the numerous changes, she was glad one thing remained the same. She felt safe, as if time had stalled in this particular place and allowed a period of peace to prevail, preventing any kind of chaos from leaking inside. Careful not to disturb the serenity of it all, Quinn treaded lightly down the aisle towards the pool and was subsequently struck by a blinding glare emitting from the back wall.

Shielding her eyes and focusing on the culprit, her blood ran cold.

Plunged into stone was Zack Fair's buster sword with white and yellow flowers flourishing around it. It was only just yesterday—or at least that's how it felt for Quinn—that she'd watched him brandish the sword as he readied himself for battle. Her trembling knees finally gave in and she dropped to the ground and wept.

"I'm sorry." She sobbed, "I'm so sorry."

Everything she knew was destroyed, yet this, this piece of her past remained intact and she didn't know if she was either crying out of gratitude or out of shame. It was a testament to the time that passed and of the gravity of her failures. When her cries grew silent and her tears ran dry, empty eyes stared down at the water and caught the reflection of the buster sword.

Her hand swirled in the pool attempting to break the image. She couldn't bear to see it again so she covered the reflection with her own, leaning over and peering into the water.

A somber scarlet haired woman, dressed in tattered SOLDIER attire, gawked back at her with only a tinge of color on her devastatingly pale olive skin. Dark brown eyes infused with mako raked over her sight, noticing her sunken cheekbones and how her lifeless curls now reached below her back. As opposed to her once strong and healthy appearance, she now looked like death itself.

Frightened by her form Quinn rapidly turned away and instead opted to focus on the small bed of flowers, Aerith's flowers. Her eyes glazed over as she watched them sway in the wind, now blowing softly throughout the church.

Maybe if she found Aerith she wouldn't feel so helpless in this foreign world. Would she be in that new city, Edge, growing flowers all over the place?

Her eyes began to droop and ever so slowly, Quin lied down on the wooden floor. Her arms draped over her eyes, trying hard to block out the brilliance of the bright blue sky.

How could she face Aerith after all this time? She wasn't even _that_ close to her. What if she forgot about everything?

 _No…she wouldn't. Eighty-nine letters remember?_

Quinn let a small chuckle escape then at last let her drowsiness take over.

 _I'll find you Aerith, I'll tell you everything. Please…please…I just hope you'll forgive me..._


End file.
